Like
by PatientNumber1889053
Summary: She always held back. But, deciding to let herself go at a wrong time, Ui Hirasawa finds herself in more drama than she ever bargained for. Complete?


**Disclaimer: **I do not own K-ON!

**Warning: **Semi-incest.

Random tidbit: I was listening to Roaring Tide/Shionari by Shinji Orito, from the Clannad VN, when I wrote this (so it sort of serves as BGM for the entire fanfic ^^). It's a wonderful piano piece, really gets you in the mood for melancholy and angst.

'**Like'**

Like.

It was a word one associates to a person he's fond of. If one says 'I like you' to another person, this would mean that that person is seen either as an ally, a close friend, a family member, or maybe even a lover. Indeed, the word 'like' never specifies how deep one feels for a person; and in order for someone to know what kind of affection is meant, he would have to ask.

For a certain Hirasawa Ui, the ambiguous word 'like' is both a convenience and a bother.

_I like Oneechan._

Three words: the first, points to Ui herself; the second, the very mysterious 'like'; and third, Oneechan—Japanese for 'older sister', with 'chan' as the honorific—this word pertains to Hirasawa Yui, third year student of Sakuragaoka, guitarist of Houkago Tea Time, and (of course) Ui's older sister.

Put together, it would simply mean that Ui is fond of her older sister.

Of course, everyone sees that as normal. Yui is the girl's sister after all. With her caring nature, Ui could even admit that she likes the fly buzzing around by the table at the far left, so if she can hand out that sort of affection for a minuscule insect, it's a sure-fire fact that Ui cares for her sister very, very much.

Though, the problem is, nobody bothers to _ask, _and if Ui would give them a straight answer…

How many times does she say that in a week? Write it down? Thought of it?

Every time, she gets reminded of one fact:

The word 'like' is her cage. It serves as her sanctuary …and her prison at the same time. Since the word 'like' simply states that she is 'fond of' Yui, everyone simply assumes that what she means is 'sisterly love' and does not bother with…the alternative.

…How long has she been in this cage, exactly? She doesn't know. All she remembers is that it was probably long ago, and with every passing day, she is trying not to force her way out.

Besides, whoever said that it was a _bird_ that was trapped in the cage? Of course it's not. Ui was sure. Only the wildest of animals—_probably even a monster—_was in that cage. _Her cage_.

It was a pleasant afternoon, when she let the monster out of its cage and took a walk.

Classes had already finished, and club activities were ongoing. As Ui headed for the stairs to exit the school, she jumped aside as Yamanaka Sawako stomped through the halls, dragging a complaining student in a yellow headband. Ui tilted her head. _Ritsu-san?_

Her doubts were then confirmed seconds later, as two raven-haired girls and a blonde came down the set of stairs the enraged teacher had entered from. "Ah, Ui-chan."

Regaining a bit of her composure, she smiled at the three: Akiyama Mio, Nakano Azusa, and Kotobuki Tsumugi. "Good afternoon everyone. How's practice?"

'_Why is Oneechan not with you?'_ was what she wanted to add next, but she forced it down her throat_. No one should see the cage, or the monster._

Mio rolled her eyes. "Delayed. That idiot did something stupid again."

Azusa mimicked her upperclassman's gesture, which earned a chuckle from Ui, and shook her head. "Honestly, that Ritsu-senpai…I swear she's doing this on purpose."

"Now, now…" Tsumugi smiled at the fuming girls. "You two shouldn't get angry at Ricchan so much. Sawako-sensei probably just had a few words to say to her."

"If you don't mind me asking…what happened?" _Was Oneechan involved?_

"The three of us were about to enter the clubroom when Ritsu went out, shouting something about 'causing havoc ___à la_ Ricchan!'…" Mio rubbed her temple, frowning. "Then Sawako-sensei got up the stairs, that idiot opened her big mouth, and you can probably guess the rest."

"Ah…I see." Ui let out the breath she was holding, happy that her older sister wasn't connected to the incident in any way. "So you three are going to check if Ritsu-san is all right?"

Tsumugi smiled. "Yes. Mio-chan and Azusa-chan have been very worried about her ever since sensei grabbed Ricchan's collar."

The two girls in particular flushed and chorused. ""W-We just want to practice! !""

Ui giggled. She often thought that the tight bond between the members of Houkago Tea Time was rather endearing, to the point that they look more like a family than a mere bunch of friends. _Oneechan's lucky to have found friends like these._

That thought then made her go back to the matter at hand. "Um, where is Oneechan?"

"Yui-senpai is still in the clubroom, I think." Azusa replied, and earned nods from the older girls.

The brown-haired girl nodded, and then smiled. "Thank you, I think I'll go check on her."

All three members smiled back at her and gave her encouraging nods as they bade her farewell… And, ignoring the pangs of guilt she felt as their dying voices showered her with compliments about being such a good and caring little sister, Ui climbed up the stairs to the music room.

As soon as she arrived on the top floor, the younger Hirasawa wasted no time as she put her hands on the doorknob, calling out as she pushed. "Oneechan, are you in—"

The last part of the girl's sentence was cut off as Ui's breath caught in her throat, as the sight before her seemed to belong more in her imagination than in real life.

There, on the couch where the Light Music Club members would usually set down their bags was a sleeping Yui, who was boyishly sprawled onto the said furniture. The sleeve of her blazer was draped over her stomach, while the rest of it had probably slipped down to the floor as the girl moved in her slumber.

The younger girl swallowed, her throat suddenly feeling dry, as she saw the older girl's ribbon was hanging loosely around her neck, and the first two buttons of her uniform lazily undone. Her breath quickened as she could clearly see the steady rise and fall of her sleeping sister's chest, and her cheeks warmed as she caught a glimpse of what lay under Yui's white shirt._ I-I've never seen Oneechan wear an orange one before…_

The girl mumbled as she turned in her sleep, hanging her arm over the couch as she rested the other one on her stomach, which caused her blazer to fully slip onto the floor. During all of this the third button managed to dislodge itself, and the younger Hirasawa's brown eyes widened at the sight of newly-exposed flesh. Ui's arms immediately shot up on reflex as her legs unconsciously kneeled in front of the couch, her hands grabbing the sides of her sister's shirt as she focused on fixing her sister's uniform.

"Nnnn…"

It was that sleepy groan that made Ui stop abruptly, freezing her on the spot as she felt something stir inside her.

The monster was snarling awake—unsatisfied, and starving.

Feeling the blood rushing to her cheeks, Ui swallowed again, and closed her eyes as she reminded herself once more. _No one should see the cage. No one should see the monster, most especially Oneechan. So, no, you can't be let out. Just be satisfied that you were allowed to be this close to her._

Thinking this was like telling a hungry man to simply sit in front of a banquet of delicious gourmet food, and the younger Hirasawa tried to remain strong as images of temptation wafted its way to her head.

She frowned. _Control yourself!_

That did nothing to slow down her erratic breathing, nor did it stop her shaking hands, or loosen her tight grip on the sleeping girl's uniform. Instead, it led her upwards…a few centimeters away from Yui's nose.

By now, the monster was boisterous, ramming its cage with all of its body weight. The iron bars groaned, its shrill screech a sign that if the monster wasn't let out soon, it would break, and there will be nothing else to restrain it.

Ui had to get away from this situation. Fast.

She tried to move, but found her gaze locked at the face before her, as her limbs refused to budge. Her body refusing to cooperate, she resorted to another option.

"Oneechan…"

If Yui woke up, she would find a reason to back away, and that would drive the monster back in its cage.

"Oneechan."

Louder this time.

"Oneechan!"

Yui groaned, but did not wake up. Instead, she sleepily draped her left arm over Ui's shoulders, and pulled her closer.

The monster let out a blood-curdling roar.

_I can't…_ "Wake up…"

Gripping the shirt tighter, Ui forcefully closed her eyes. Trying not to think of the older girl's warm breath on her face, she weakly shook her.

"Oneechan…get up…"

Yui didn't, and continued sleeping, unaware of what she's doing to the younger girl. Because she wouldn't wake up, Ui would have no reason to back away, and, probably…

It was simply a matter of time before her wavering resolve crumbled, and she felt it as her improper thoughts increased tenfold as her mind tempted her further.

_She's asleep. _

_She won't notice._

_She might not know you were here at all. _

"Wa…Wake up…"

_You will never get a chance like this again._

"Oneechan…"

_For just this moment, let your heart go for once. _

"…I love you, Oneechan."

It felt…nice. Her chest no longer hurt, and it felt as though she were a prisoner being released after ten years in prison. Like finding an oasis after two weeks of seeing nothing but dunes of sand, Ui felt a smile tug on her lips as they finally landed on the location they had secretly yearned for ever since she had reached puberty. _Orange, huh…I thought she didn't like that flavor much…_

"…mmph!"

That sound shattered her reverie, turning the oasis into a pit of quicksand as her recently-freed heart was suddenly jerked back and put into an iron maiden.

Wide-eyed, Ui roughly pulled away, and stumbled backwards. Honestly, how could she be so stupid? Thinking her sister wouldn't notice someone stealing a kiss while she was asleep…of course Yui wasn't _that_ airheaded.

Ui shakily got up on her feet, every nerve in her body frantically screaming at her to get the hell away. If she got away quickly, the older girl might mistake her for someone else…better yet, she might think it was all a dream. She instantly made a dash for the door.

The younger Hirasawa didn't expect the other girl to be quick enough to grab her wrist as she fumbled with the doorknob. She felt dread stewing in her stomach as realization hit her.

She was caught…by the last person she ever wanted to know about this.

The younger girl couldn't bear to look. If imagining Yui's horrified expression when she found out about this always brings her on the brink of tearing up, how would she fare dealing with it now?

"Oneechan…I—"

Ui was cut off as she was yanked back, gasping as her frightened eyes did not meet chocolate orbs identical to her own…

…and freezing as she identified the confused girl who stared back at her with intense amber eyes.

"…Ui-chan?"

_The End…?_

**A/N:** In this crazy-headed moment, let me wag my behind at the audience and say…Didn't expect _that_ now, did ya? :P

…Yes, I know what you're thinking. WTF, right? That's what I thought when I finished writing this too. =_= At first I just wanted to give some Ui-chan-love, then I couldn't resist twisting it around because it was just too damn angsty for my taste…which then resulted in me creating one of the most unexpected (for me at least) CRACK pairings in the fandom: UI/RITSU. Ah, Kami, how did this get in my messed-up head? -_-"

Well, now I'm totally wondering if I should continue this. I have a few ideas on the plot, which might take a _reaaaallly _long time to construct, because my writing brain has a harem of rabid plot-rabbits all begging for attention =_=" So…anybody think I should?


End file.
